Happy Family
by the archduke
Summary: Jerrica and Eric have to work together to keep Starlight Music. In Hawaii. In bathing suits. Hey, it could happen.
1. Default Chapter

"Happy Family"

by: the archduke

Disclaimer: I own nothing and this is a totally not-for-profit endeavor. "Jem" the show and all its parts belong to someone else. And this has nothing to do with Chinese food other than I like it.

Chapter 1:

Jerrica Benton considered herself to be a fairly tolerant person. She put up with twice as much crap as other people (the fact that she was two people had a lot to do with this) in her day-to-day life and made the best out of the situations she was dealt. When her father died she had been barely an adult, and she didn't think anyone would have really blamed her for rejecting all the responsibilities thrust upon her if she had chosen to do so.

Being co-owner of a major music company was stressful enough for those who knew what they were doing, let alone a newcomer such as herself. And if she screwed up the Starlight Foundation then little orphan girls would be homeless. _Little orphan girls would be homeless._ She'd burn in hell for sure if that happened on her watch. Add in the potential of disappointing millions of fans as Jem, and Jerrica figured that, all in all, she handled herself as well as she could under the circumstances. Sure, her love life was a bit…unconventional…but some things just couldn't be helped.

There was one person, however, that had used up all of Jerrica's goodwill. Just hearing the name Eric Raymond made her hands clench into fists and caused her to grind her teeth together. If Eric weren't such a major sleazy yuppie jerk she would have been more than happy to hand over the reigns of Starlight music to him and relegate herself to a silent partner. But he was such a despicable, underhanded, disgusting excuse for a human being she had created an alter ego rock star to make sure he didn't ruin the company her parents had loved.

If Eric knew he was the reason Jem existed, Jerrica was sure he'd drop dead from shock. Some days that was reason enough to let her secret out of the bag.

This felt like one of those days. She was currently in the elevator at Misfits Music, or whatever his company called itself this week, heading up to his office to give him a stern talking to. Or maybe a stern punch in his mouth.

When the elevator doors opened on the correct floor, Jerrica strode purposefully towards his office, not even bothering with the secretary that sat reading a magazine. If the woman noticed Jerrica's arrival she gave no indication of it. Jerrica went through the door, slammed it shut behind her, and gave her best glare to a surprised Eric.

By the narrowing of his eyes and the scowl forming on his face, Jerrica could surmise that Eric was as happy to see her as she was to see him.

"What in the hell are you doing in my office?"

"What in the hell are you trying to pull this time?"

Both question were asked simultaneously, and they each waited for the other to answer first. Jerrica said nothing, but walked up to Eric's desk and threw down a file full of papers.

"Stay away from Starlight Music. I see what you're trying to do," she said as she stabbed the file with a finger, "and it won't work. I won't let you get away with it." She crossed her arms over her chest and waited for Eric to respond.

Eric stared at her for a few seconds, then opened up the folder she had thrown on his desk. After flipping through some pages he set the file back down and looked up at her.

"It's not me," he said and he leaned back in his chair with his hands steepled in front of his face.

Jerrica gave a snort. "Sure. Who else would be sniffing around my business loans? If you think that you can get Starlight by buying my loans from the bank then you've got another thing coming, because-"

Eric stood up and cut her off. "I said it wasn't me. In fact, someone's been asking about my loans relating to Starlight as well. I at first assumed it was you, but you're probably in as much debt as I am. Playing mother to street rats can't be cheap."

Jerrica opened her mouth in indignation about what he said about her girls, but he kept on talking. "So after I didn't jump to conclusions," here he gave her a pointed look, "I did a bit of asking around. It's the Japanese. Those bastards really do want to control the world." He had by now moved from behind his desk and now stood about two feet from Jerrica.

She kept her gaze on him and thought. A hostile takeover? He didn't seem to be lying, but she knew just how good of a liar he could be. He had charmed her father into giving him half of Starlight music; she could not underestimate him.

"The Japanese? So an entire nation wants Starlight now?" She needed more information before she could believe him.

"Only one. Hayao Tanaka. Made a fortune in hotels. He apparently now wants to move into the music business." Eric stood there looking at her, unmoving. She stared right back, not giving him the satisfaction of looking away first. Their impromptu staring contest ended when his secretary called him over the intercom.

"Mr. Raymond, your flight to Hawaii has been confirmed. Do you-," before she could finish, Eric lunged over his desk to respond, startling Jerrica into taking a few steps away.

"That's fine. Thank you." He turned from the intercom to face a suspicious Jerrica.

"That's just a little, um, vacation I'm planning," he said. He nodded as if confirming all that he's said. "Been in the works for ages. Should be quite restful and relax-" He was cut off by his secretary again.

"I've also confirmed your meeting with Mr. Tanaka for Tuesday, 1:30, at-" Again he lunged over the desk, but this time he ripped the intercom from the wall. He really needed to get a new secretary.

Even without turning around he knew that he'd been found out.

This was confirmed when Jerrica's voice, just a whisper, met his ears. "If you think I'm letting you meet with this Tanaka guy without me, you are sorely mistaken. When are we leaving for Hawaii?"

A/N: Alright, I figured since I haven't seen an episode of this show in over 15 years it would be a perfect time to write a fanfic.

Since the show takes place in the mid-80's, when the Japanese were scaring the Americans to death in the business world, this concept would make some historical sense. And Hawaii is one of my favorite places in the world.

And while Jerrica/Eric would probably never happen in canon, that's what fanfic is for.


	2. Chapter 2

"Happy Family"

Disclaimer: None is mine.

Chapter 2:

As Eric settled into his first class seat (no matter how financially strapped he was, coach was _never_ an option), he couldn't help smiling to himself. Looking out the airplane window, he mentally pictured Jerrica Benton getting off the 2 pm flight from Los Angeles International to Honolulu, and arriving just in time to have missed the meeting with Tanaka that Eric had rescheduled. When she had barged into his office last week, found out about the meeting,and then demanded to know every detail of it, from the exact place and time of the meeting itself to his complete flight schedule, he had tried to waylay her with half-truths, evasions and even a few outright lies.

But somehow, he didn't know exactly but he suspected his bungling secretary was to blame, she had found out all the details of his trip and had called him to cheekily ask if he wanted to carpool to the airport together since they were on the same flight. That was when he bypassed his secretary and rescheduled the meeting with Tanaka himself.

It took some doing too, using all his charm to convince Tanaka's secretary to move the meeting up by a day due to some "family business" that Eric just _had _to take care of on Tuesday, so he just _couldn't _make the original meeting. Knowing that Tanaka placed a sickening emphasis on family over business had come in handy. Eric knew that doing some research into the Japanese multimillionaire would pay off.

Eric had two goals to accomplish at the meeting with Tanaka: to get the man to buy out Jerrica's shares in Starlight, and to convince him that becoming partners and allowing Eric to manage the music company alone would be beneficial to them both. A rich, silent partner would make Eric a very happy music mogul, not to mention the euphoria he would experience in finally getting rid of Jerrica Benton.

Just the thought of the girl made his face heat in frustrated anger. No matter how many times he thought he had finally beat her, she somehow managed to not only survive, but flourish while he got knocked on his ass, sometimes both metaphorically and literally. She had a secret, and his gut told him it had to do with Jem. He hadn't found anything yet, but he just knew...

_Hello._ Eric's thoughts of Jerrica were immediately struck from his brain as his seat mate arrived and sat in the vacant aisle seat next to him. She had on one of those oversized hats that Joan Collins's Alexis had made fashionable recently, so he couldn't see her face. Her body, however, was on fine display at the moment. A short, tight skirt showed an almost indecent amount of leg, while the matching suit jacket was unbuttoned and covered an off-white silk blouse that draped provocatively over an impressive pair of breasts. Blonde hair peeked out from under the hat. He'd always had a thing for blondes.

He crossed his legs and angled his body to face her. It gave the impression that she had his undivided attention, and he'd found that women liked to feel as if they were the center of the universe. He was more than happy to humor them if it got him what he wanted. Which it usually did.

"It's always a crapshoot when I have to fly alone; I never know who I'll be seated next to. Looks like today was my lucky day." He gave her his most charming smile, because this was the part where she'd turn to him, and he wanted the first thing for her to see was that smile. He had perfected it so it was just the right amounts of sincerity and interest, with just a dash of humor thrown in.

But she kept her face averted as she responded. "Nuts, I bet Kimber that the first words out of your mouth would be about joining the Mile High Club. Guess I owe her ten bucks when I get back."

Eric instinctively recoiled from the familiar voice. He was fervently hoping that his mind was playing tricks on him, but his hopes were dashed when his flight companion turned her face fully towards him.

Jerrica Benton had a rather smug smile on her face as she reached up to remove the hat from her head. Her straight blonde hair fell to her shoulders and she gave her head a little shake to settle any wayward strands. Her right eyebrow lifted in a challenging gesture.

"Surprised to see me Eric?" she asked.

Recovering from the shock of seeing her, Eric found his voice. "What the hell are you doing on this plane?"

The smug smile vanished and a glowering stare was leveled on him. "You don't think I actually trusted you not to double-cross me, did you? I've had enough dealings with you over the years to know better. I might be young and female, but I'm not stupid."

"How did you know about the change in the schedule?" Eric didn't wait for her to answer the question. "It was my worthless secretary, wasn't it? She can't keep her mouth shut. That bitch is so fired when I get back."

Jerrica bristled. "Your secretary had nothing to do with this, and don't you dare use that sort of language when referring to her or any woman. It's men like you that make it so difficult for women in the workplace."

"I don't need lectures on how I treat my employees from you. And you never answered my question. How did you find out about my flight changes?"

Jerrica didn't immediately answer. She instead settled herself in her seat, buckled her seatbelt, and placed her hat demurely over her lap. Staring straight ahead at the seat in front of her she merely said, "I have my ways."

Eric took a look at her hard face and scoffed. He turned forward in his own seat and buckled his belt. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her face soften slightly so that she wore an expression of wariness rather than anger. He couldn't help but remember the first time their paths had crossed, more thana decadeago. He father had brought her to Starlight one afternoon, a slip of a girl that looked to him to be all elbows and knees. He had never been comfortable around children, and after asking her the obligatory questions about school and hobbies he made his excuses and left father and daughter to their own devices.

He saw her maybe half a dozen times in the intervening years, at the office and once at the Benton household when he had some business papers to deliver to her father. Back then he had been a green twenty-three year old just beginning to learn the ropes of the music industry, eager and ambitious, and making friends with the boss's daughter hadn't been high on his list of priorities. Looking back he labeled his younger self a fool. If he had made nice with her then, perhaps things would have been more favorable for him now. Little had he known that the awkward teenager would grow to become a most formidable adversary.

Comparing the young girl to the woman who now sat next to him, he had to admit she had filled out quite nicely since that first meeting. There was a hell of a lot more between those elbows and knees now than there had been ten years ago, and it was all in the right places.

He was brought out of his thoughts by the movement of the plane on the runway. They had pulled away from the gate and were now accelerating in preparation for take off. Eric looked out the window as the plane lifted itself from the ground and climbed higher into the sky. He couldn't let himself get distracted by Jerrica. She was beautiful, but she was also smart, and she hated him as much as he hated her. Her presence here today had thrown him but he'd be damned before he let her ruin his plans.

Eric mentally prepared himself for the meeting with Tanaka, and how to deal with her unexpected prescence. They didn't talk for the entire six hour flight to Honolulu.

A/N: Dynasty. Good times.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters.

Synergy had once again saved all their necks. Jerrica would have missed the rescheduled meeting with Tanaka, and possibly lost Starlight Music in the process, if Synergy hadn't been monitoring the computers of all the major airlines and caught the change made to Eric's flight to Hawaii. Synergy had then gone into the computers at Tanaka's corporate headquarters and found the specifics of the rescheduled meeting. A few phone calls later, Jerrica had booked the seat next to Eric, deciding that the old cliché about keeping your enemies close was very good advice.

Jerrica had once asked Synergy how she could get information from computers thousands of miles away. Did she project herself to where the computer was and peek over someone's shoulder? Synergy gave her an indulgent smile and told her that major corporations, government agencies, and universities where beginning to connect their computers to each other through phone lines. They were beginning to form a sort of web, or net, of communication using computers. Emmett Benton had foreseen this technological development and gave Synergy the ability to do the same.

Jerrica had merely shaken her head. The idea that computers could talk to each other was truly outrageous.

Sitting next to Eric for six hours hadn't held much appeal for Jerrica. She had dressed in one of her business suits in preparation for the meeting later in the day, but had added a large hat that when tilted at an angle hid her face from view. She hadn't wanted Eric to recognize her until it was too late to get off the plane. She wasn't about to go chasing him around LAX while he tried to book another flight and attend the meeting with Tanaka without her.

What Jerrica hadn't been expecting was Eric hitting on her not thirty seconds after she sat down in her seat. She had fibbed about betting Kimber ten dollars, but she had been so shocked at the gall of the man she had said the first thing that came to her mind. Judging by the look on his face, her comeback had done its job.

The flight had been mercifully uneventful, the only person either Jerrica or Eric had spoken to being the flight attendant. After the plane pulled up to the gate and the seatbelt signs had been turned off, Jerrica got up and retrieved her carryon bag from the overhead bin. She had only brought a few things along since this was solely a business trip and she was scheduled to return to Los Angeles the next day.

She saw Eric quickly grab his own bag and start to make his way to the exit on the other side of the airplane, pushing people out of his way in his haste. He was trying to ditch her! Before Jerrica could go after him a flight attendant stepped into his path and said something to him. A few seconds later Eric was turning back towards her with a scowl on his face.

"Patience is a virtue, Eric", she said with a smile in her voice.

"Shut up."

She laughed outright, amused by the disgruntled look on his face. Passengers were starting to disembark the plane, beginning with first class. Jerrica kept close to Eric as they made their way from the gate and through the airport terminal.

Near baggage claim Jerrica saw a stocky man in a chauffeur's uniform holding a sign that had "Raymond" spelled out in block letters. She poked Eric in the arm and pointed towards the chauffeur. "I think that's our ride."

Eric still looked disgruntled. "What do you mean 'our ride'? I don't see the name "Benton" anywhere on that sign. You can take a taxi."

She ran to catch up with him as he made his way toward the chauffeur. She reached the man a moment before Eric did.

"Hi, I'm Jerrica Benton. I'm guessing you're here to take us to the Royal Hawaiian Waikiki hotel to meet with Mr. Tanaka?" Jerrica transferred her hat from her right hand to her left to shake his hand. As she did so the hat slipped from her grasp and fell to the floor. The chauffeur immediately bent down to retrieve it, and when he handed it back Jerrica gave him a large smile that had the man visibly melting under her attention.

"Thank you so much Mr.,"

"Redmond. Josh Redmond," the man stammered.

Eric rolled his eyes and muttered a barely heard "You've got to be kidding me" as he stepped past the obviously smitten chauffeur. He turned and barked at the man, "Well, are you coming or not? I'm on a schedule here."

Jerrica took a hold of Josh's arm and led him toward the limo waiting by the curb. "Don't pay any attention to Mr. Raymond, Josh. He doesn't fly well. It upsets his delicate constitution."

Jerrica felt a feeling of satisfaction well up inside her as she saw the back of Eric's neck go red. She was getting to him, keeping him off balance. Exactly what she had to do to make sure he didn't get his hands on Starlight.

As she followed Eric into the back of the limo, taking a moment to flash another grateful smile at Josh as he held the door open for her, she vowed that she would do anything to keep Starlight from Eric. Anything.

Next chapter: we meet the man himself. And a twist will be revealed.

Author's note: I think I like writing from Eric's POV better. So the interesting stuff might happen on Eric's chapters. But I'm trying to make Jerrica a bit more interesting than she was in the show. I don't want to make her into uber-tough-girl, but just give her more of a backbone.


End file.
